Bombardier introduces a battery-electric hybrid passenger train

Electric light-rail trains are an increasingly common sight in cities around the world. Their ability to carry large numbers of people efficiently and with minimal pollution or noise is important as cities become more crowded and emissions regulations become even stricter.

The problem with these overhead-wire electric light-rail trains comes when you want to take them out of the city and run them in areas without electrified routes. Previously this would've required the use of a diesel-electric locomotive, which brings with it the noise and pollution traditionally associated with internal combustion engines. Bombardier Transportation, however, plans to address this with battery-electric trains in a program it's testing out in Germany, it announced on Wednesday.